PM for building non-communal, poverty free Bangladesh

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DHAKA, August 14, 2019 (BSS) – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has urged the
countrymen to turn the grief of the loss of Bangabandhu into strength and
engage themselves in building a non-communal, hunger-poverty free and
prosperous Bangladesh by upholding Bangabandhu’s philosophy.

“This should be our solemn pledge on this National Mourning Day,” the
premier said in a message on the eve of the National Mourning day.

“The killers were able to assassinate Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
but they could not kill his dreams and ideals,” she said. She said the 15th
August is the National Mourning Day of Bangladesh as on this day in 1975, the
greatest Bangalee of all time along with most of his family members, was
assassinated brutally.

Eighteen members of Bangabandhu’s family including Bangamata Sheikh
Fazilatunnesa Mujib, three sons-Captain Sheikh Kamal, Lieutenant Sheikh Jamal
and 10-year old Sheikh Russel, two daughters-in-law Sultana Kamal and Rosy
Jamal, brother Sheikh Naser, peasant leader Abdur Rab Serniabat, youth leader
Sheikh Fazlul Haq Moni and his wife Arzu Moni, Baby Serniabat, Sukanta Babu,
Arif and Abdul Nayeem Khan Rintu, among others, were also killed on that
fateful night.

She said the killers gunned down as well Bangabandhu’s Military Secretary
Brigadier General Jamil as he tried to rescue the father of the Nation.

Sheikh Hasina recalled that several members of a family in the capital’s
Mohammadpur area were also killed by artillery shells fired by the killers as
they launched the attack on Bangabandhu’s house.

“On this day, I pray to the Almighty Allah for the salvation of the
departed souls of the Father of the Nation and all other martyrs of August
15,” said the Prime Minister.

Under the dynamic, courageous and charismatic leadership of Bangabandhu,
the Bengali nation snatched the shining sun of Independence breaking away the
chain of subordination.

“The Bengalis got an independent sovereign country, its own flag and
national anthem (under his leadership),” she said.

Sheikh Hasina said the anti-liberation clique killed Bangabandhu at a time
when he was spearheading a massive reconstruction campaign to build a Golden
Bangla.

Through the killing of Bangabandhu, the defeated forces of the Liberation
War made abortive attempts to distort the tradition, culture and advancement
of the Bangalee Nation.

The premier said the aim of the killers was to break the state structure of
secular democratic Bangladesh and foil the hard-earned independence.

“The anti-liberation forces involved in the carnage initiated the politics
of killing, coup and conspiracy right after August 15, 1975. They also
blocked the way of the trial of Bangabandhu murder by promulgating indemnity
ordinance,” she said.

Sheikh Hasina said Ziaur Rahman illegally took over the state power and
promulgated Martial Law desecrating the democracy and suspending the
Constitution.

Zia rewarded the Bangabandhu killers with diplomatic assignments abroad
alongside giving the anti-liberation-war criminals nationality, made them
partners in the state power and rehabilitated them politically and socially.

The subsequent governments of BNP-Jamaat alliance had followed the same
path, she said.

Winning the general elections on June 12, 1996, Bangladesh Awami League
assumed state power after 21 years to open a new horizon of socio-economic
development.

“This period (1996-2001) was a ‘golden era’ for the people of Bangladesh,”
she said.

The premier recalled that the government had initiated the trial of the
Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman killing case during
this period but after coming to power in 2001, BNP-Jamaat alliance government
halted the trial process.

The people of the country made Awami League victorious again in the Ninth
Parliamentary elections on December 29, 2008.

She said Awami League’s election to power exposed the party to newer
challenges of restarting the development cycles, cleaning the thorns set by
the previous regime to block the progress and facing the global economic
recession.

But, she said, by now, Awami League has put the country on firm economic
footing.

Sheikh Hasina said rejecting BNP-Jamaat’s conspiracy to foil the general
elections on January 5, 2014, people upheld the constitutional continuation
by casting their votes.

Winning the elections again, she said, Awami League kept the pace of
development and during the last ten and a half year, Bangladesh has achieved
desired advancement in every sector and Bangladesh is now a ‘role model’ of
socio-economic development in the world, said the premier.

“Bangladesh has attained the status of a developing nation. We have
launched Bangabandhu satellite-1 in the space. We will turn Bangladesh into a
middle-income country before 2021 and a developed one by 2041, Insha Allah,”
she said.

She said her government executed the verdict of the Bangabandhu killing
case and completed the trial of the killers of four national leaders.

The verdicts of the cases against war criminals of 1971 are being executed.
Our government is following ‘zero tolerance’ policy to uproot militancy-
terrorism,” said the Prime Minister.

She said the path of grabbing state power unconstitutionally has been
stopped through the 15th amendment to the Constitution.

“We have to remain prepared to resist any ill-attempt by the anti-
liberation-fundamentalist quarters and, anti-development and anti-democracy
forces,” said the premier.